Lt Gen Asim Munir appointed as army chief, Lt Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza as CJCSC
Hours after receiving a summary about Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's nominations for the next army chief and Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC), President Arif Alvi has approved the summary and Lt Gen Asim Munir has been named as the chief of army staff and Lt Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza has been named as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee.
The appointments were announced by Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb on Twitter - a tweet which was deleted and swiftly put up again - capping weeks of intense speculation on the matter. In her tweet, Aurangzeb said the premier made the choice while exercising his constitutional authority. She went on to say that a summary of the same had been sent to President Arif Alvi.
According to media, President Alvi reached Lahore on Thursday afternoon to meet with Imran at the PTI chief's Zaman Park residence, where he is recuperating from injuries he sustained in an assassination attempt. PTI leaders Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Asad Umar and Fawad Chaudhry were also present at Imran's Lahore residence.
Speaking to the media minutes after the announcement was made, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said the matter had been decided according to the law and the Constitution, calling on the nation to refrain from viewing it through a "political lens".
He expressed the hope that the president would not make the appointments "controversial" and would endorse the advice of the premier. The defence minister reiterated that the president should endorse the premier's advice so that a "controversy may not arise".
"This will also help our country and the economy to get on track. Currently, everything is at a standstill."
He expressed the same in a tweet, saying that the advice had been forwarded to the president. He went on to say that it would now be a test for former premier Imran Khan where he could either strengthen the institution responsible for defending the country or make it controversial.
"This is also a test for President Alvi, whether he will follow political advice or the constitutional and legal advice," he said. "As the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, it is his duty to protect the country from political conflicts," he said about Alvi.
Meanwhile, PTI's official account quoted Imran Khan as saying "when the summary comes, I and the president of Pakistan will act according to the Constitution and laws". His statement comes a day after Imran claimed President Alvi would "definitely" consult him as soon as the summary for the appointment of next army chief reaches his office.
"President Alvi will definitely consult me on the summary for the appointment of army chief and take a decision as per the law and Constitution. I am head of the party that Dr Alvi belongs to," he remarked while speaking to journalists at his Zaman Park residence on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, outgoing CJCSC General Nadeem Raza held farewell meetings with President Alvi and PM Shehbaz. A statement from Aiwan-iSadr said Gen Raza called on President Alvi in a farewell meeting. "The president appreciated the services of General Nadeem Raza for national defence," it said.